Tesla`s CEO, and the new owner of Twitter, Elon Musk, is at war with Apple. Musk says Apple threatened to remove Twitter from the App store. Not only that. Apple has also stopped advertising on Twitter.
On Monday, Elon Musk tweeted: «Apple has also threatened to withhold Twitter from its App Store, but won`t tell us why.»
Apple is the world`s most valuable company and has huge power. The company was the top advertiser on Twitter and accounted for more than 4 percent of Twitter`s revenue in the first quarter of this year.
Apple spent nearly $50 million on ads on Twitter, which is a huge loss for a company like Twitter. But if Apple were to block Twitter from its App Store, people would be unable to download the Twitter App on their iPhones, and iPads. It will also be problematic for existing users.
Twitter has warned investors in regulatory filings that the success of its services is dependent on their surviving review for compliance with App Store.
«Such review processes can be difficult to predict and certain decisions may harm our business,» the company wrote in a filing to the SEC last year.
«Failure to adhere to Apple`s and Google`s guidelines would be catastrophic, risking Twitter`s expulsion from their app stores and making it more difficult for billions of potential users to get Twitter`s services,» Yoel Roth, the company`s former head of Trust and Safety, wrote in a New York Times op-ed.
On Monday, Elon Musk also tweeted this: «Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Do they hate free speech in America?» But Apple didn`t respond to this.
Musk has attacked Apple in a series of tweets after his takeover. He sought to stoke long-running concerns and political scrutiny over Apple`s market power. He tweeted a link to a parody video that Apple foe Epic Games made in 2020 criticizing the App Store as a «monopoly.»
He also tweeted a yes or no poll, asking his more than 119 million followers whether Apple should «publish all censorship actions it has taken that affect its customers.» In another tweet, Musk said: «Did you know Apple puts a secret 30% tax on everything you buy through their App Store?»
But there are more problems for Musk and Twitter. The EU has raised the prospect of a substantial fine or ban for Twitter after warning that it must «significantly increase» efforts to comply with new online legislation.
Twitter`s new owner, Elon Musk, was told he had «huge work ahead» to comply with the EU`s Digital Services Act, which requires tech firms to tackle problems including abusive posts and disinformation.
«I welcome Elon Musk`s statement of intent to get Twitter 2,0 ready for the DSA,» the EU`s commissioner for the internal market, Thierry Breton said. «I am pleased to hear that he has read it carefully and considers it as a sensible approach to implementing on a worldwide basis. But let`s also be clear that there is still huge work ahead, as Twitter will have to implement transparent user policies, significantly reinforce content moderation and protect freedom of speech.»
The Financial Times reported that Breton reiterated the punishments for breaches of the act, which include fines of up to 6% of global turnover, which would be around $500m in Twitter`s case, or a temporary suspension of the service if refused to comply endangers people`s life and safety. Suspension is described by the EU as a «last resort.»
Musk has fired half of Twitter`s 7,500 staff since buying the company for $44 billion in October. Another 1,200 was leaving the company in November after Musk told the remaining staff to commit to being «hardcore» or leave.
In November last year, I wrote an article about Musk and his potential Tesla phone, the Model Pi Smartphone. A phone that is connected to your Tesla EV which is also connected to the Starlink satellite.
The Tesla smartphone Model Pi is equipped with a quality 4K screen, has four cameras, and is powered by Snapdragon 898 SoC chip. Is this the reason why Apple is threatening Musk and Twitter?
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters at Monday`s briefing that the White House was «keeping an eye on» Musk`s handling of Twitter.
There is no doubt: Elon Musk is at war with Apple.
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